Cloud Storage Gateway Caching for Access Speed
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Commercially available cloud storage services lack efficient file sharing and synchronization protocols, leading to slower access times and inadequate data synchronization across geographically distributed systems, particularly when compared to local storage devices.
Innovation Solution
A multilevel file system architecture that utilizes cloud storage gateways to provide caching, WAN acceleration, and data synchronization services, allowing endpoints to select the best route for data flow based on bandwidth, latency, and other criteria, and synchronizing data on a sub-file granularity to optimize access speed and responsiveness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If cloud storage services are used to provide mass storage through web service interface, then storage capacity and accessibility are improved, but data access speed and synchronization performance deteriorate compared to local storage devices
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments files into blocks and stores them distributed across multiple cloud storage systems. This segmentation allows parallel access to different blocks, improving overall data access speed while maintaining large storage capacity across the cloud infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces cloud agents as intermediary components that cache data locally on user devices and manage synchronization with cloud storage systems. This intermediary layer provides fast local access to frequently used data while maintaining connection to remote cloud storage, resolving the speed-capacity tradeoff.
2Device complexity
If standard file sharing protocols are not implemented in cloud storage services, then service simplicity and cloud-native optimization are improved, but file sharing efficiency and synchronization capability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes cloud storage systems compatible with standard file sharing protocols (CIFS, NFS) while maintaining cloud-native optimization. The system can operate in multiple modes - cloud-optimized for general access and protocol-compatible for enterprise file sharing, achieving both simplicity and efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent dynamically changes operational parameters based on access patterns and protocol requirements. When standard protocols are needed, the system adjusts its behavior to match protocol expectations while maintaining underlying cloud optimization, allowing efficient file sharing without sacrificing cloud-native benefits.
3Adaptability or versatility
If data is stored remotely in cloud data centers, then accessibility from any location is improved, but synchronization latency and network dependency increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent pre-loads and caches data blocks locally on user devices before they are actually needed. Cloud agents anticipate access patterns and proactively synchronize data to local cache, reducing synchronization latency when users access files from different locations while maintaining remote accessibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical dependency on network connectivity for data access by implementing local caching mechanisms. Users can access cached data offline or with minimal network dependency, reducing synchronization latency while maintaining the ability to access remote cloud storage when needed.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A method and computing device for allowing synchronized access to a cloud storage system (CSS) based on stub tracking. The computing device comprises: a processing unit; a storage system, wherein the storage system is configured to maintain objects, each object having a state, wherein each state is any one of: a synchronized state, and a stub state; and a memory, the memory containing instructions that, when executed by the processing unit, configure the computing device to: receive a request from a client to access an object maintained in the storage system; change the state of the requested object from a stub state to a synchronized state upon receiving the request; and synchronize data of the requested object having a synchronized state with the CSS.